Press Room
NAHRO Welcomes HUD Action on Emergency Housing Needs
Contact: Mary Barron, 202-289-3500
ext. 280
WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 -- The National Association of Housing and Redevelopment
Officials (NAHRO) welcomes the United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development's (HUD's) release of its plan to meet the emergency housing needs
of previously HUD-assisted families and individuals displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
The plan, announced today and effective Monday, September 26, will provide 18-month
transitional housing vouchers to thousands of previously HUD-assisted households
and will be administered through the established network of local public housing
authorities (PHAs) across the country.
Since Katrina made landfall, NAHRO has called upon federal authorities to give
local housing agencies-the nation's experts on connecting families in need with
safe and decent housing-the resources necessary to meet this unprecedented housing
crisis. Today's announcement indicates that PHAs will soon have the resources
necessary to respond to the needs of the tens of thousands of displaced Housing
Choice Voucher holders and public housing residents, as well as households assisted
under the Section 202 and Section 811 programs which provide supportive housing
for the elderly and the disabled. NAHRO is also pleased that previously homeless
individuals will be eligible for assistance under HUD's plan as well. Over the
past several weeks, NAHRO's members have been asking for the resources to help
their communities. As HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced during today's
press conference unveiling the plan, PHAs "have been asking, and we are
responding."
"From what we have seen thus far, this plan recognizes the essential role
PHAs have and will continue to play in responding to this national crisis,"
said NAHRO Executive Director Saul Ramirez. "At the same time, the federal
government must strike an appropriate balance between meeting the immediate
needs of displaced families while keeping intact resources needed to address
the national affordable housing crisis that existed before Katrina made landfall."
As additional details of the plan emerge, NAHRO hopes that HUD will take the
following into consideration. NAHRO believes this effort should be paid for
using funds previously appropriated to the Federal Emergency Management Agency
under emergency supplemental legislation, rather than by depleting existing
HUD resources targeted to low- and moderate-income Americans. Additionally,
waiving income eligibility for this program will allow PHAs to assist displaced
households as expeditiously as possible. The Department has indicated that every
emergency housing voucher will pay 100 percent of Fair Market Rent for the community
in which a voucher holder chooses to reside. NAHRO recommends that HUD permit
payments of 150 percent of the FMR where necessary, particularly in light of
higher rents demanded for newly scarce housing units.
Families displaced by the disaster will need support as they rebuild their lives.
NAHRO hopes federal agencies will coordinate their efforts closely to give families
ready access to transportation, education, and other necessary supportive services.
NAHRO also recommends that administrative allowances under the program be sufficient
to allow agencies to provide the intensive housing counseling and relocation
services that these displaced families will need.
NAHRO looks forward to working with the Department to ensure that previously
assisted emergency voucher recipients are able to resume their participation
in the Housing Choice Voucher program or their residency in public housing after
the 18-month period expires. While HUD's plan is an important step toward meeting
the needs of previously assisted displaced families and individuals, NAHRO continues
to advocate for a minimum of 50,000 emergency housing vouchers, with a two-year
term, for previously unassisted households. NAHRO's members stand ready to assist
the Department with additional efforts designed to address this crisis, as well
as the nation's ongoing need for affordable housing.
The National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO), established
in 1933, is a membership organization of 21,000 housing and community development
agencies and professionals throughout the United States whose mission is to
create affordable housing and safe, viable communities that enhance the quality
of life for all Americans, especially those of low- and moderate-income. NAHRO's
membership administers more than 3 million housing units for 7.6 million people.
Web: http://www.nahro.org
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